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Yawn. Been there done that. Except we did not chicken fry the placenta. I did however get the distinct honor of watching my baby-momma shit out a huge hemmorhoid and squirt a stream of blood and shit about 1 foot while she was pushing. Good times.

PS- Mitchy, ARe you sure thats a magnolia? Doesnt look like any of our MAgnolias.

Poor Southerners -- always so self-centered. The magnolia grown in the South is the grandiflora magnolia, there are other types planted outside of that growing region. Though I will admit that the grandiflora is what comes to my mind but only because that's what I grew up with. Fortunately my horizons are more expanded after shedding the shackles of Southern mediocrity as a young man.

MidAtlantic and New England folk know the "saucer magnolia". The kind that loses it leaves in winter and has HUGE usually pink flowers.

There are many clumps of big old ones in Prospect Park in Brooklyn, for example. One of the charms is watching those flower buds get bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger, and then bam, rather than the flowers, which bloom about same time as the daffodils, a snowstorm kills off the buds...

But then, watch the trees carefully. There will eventually be new buds, here and there on the tree, and it produces singular blooms deep in the glossy foliage all through the heat of summer, and looks very tropical...

Also I keep my eyes out in Switzerland, there are some big camelia trees that bloom in late winter.

Lugano (and to a smaller extent Montreux) have Mediterranean gardens on the lakesides.

Logged

ďFrom each, according to his ability; to each, according to his needĒ 1875 K Marx

Yes, there are 2 magnolias in the pic.The larger one in bloom is white and the smaller one on the left side in the pic is pink and is about a week behind in blooming.I have pictures of the house when these trees were planted in the late 1960's.They are very fast growers!Miss P. and Mecch know their magnolias.

Poor Southerners -- always so self-centered. The magnolia grown in the South is the grandiflora magnolia, there are other types planted outside of that growing region. Though I will admit that the grandiflora is what comes to my mind but only because that's what I grew up with. Fortunately my horizons are more expanded after shedding the shackles of Southern mediocrity as a young man.

Oh fiddle-dee-dee honey chile, you go full on antebellum when it suits you.

The tree from the Deep South I really adore is the Spanish Moss. Those never grew in Virginia, and even the typical grandiflora magnolia only was found in the far coastal southeast of the state -- like Williamsburg.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

I want to plant this tree, called a Prairie Fire Crabapple. It has these beautiful blooms in spring, then the leaves change from orange, red, purple, and green through the year. In the winter, it has red fruit. I've read it is one of the best crabapples, because it is resistant to many of the diseases many others get. Some have told me it still has issues. I think I will try it anyway.

These are the fruit it keeps all winter, providing birds don't eat them all.

We have a similar crabapple.I don't know the variety as it was one of the few trees that were on the property when we moved here 17 years ago.The bloom color looks the same and the foliage is deep greenish purple.It blooms during the first week in May.I'll try to remember to take a pic.

These concrete style planters that are the standard ones in Switzerland. They look like this

I will fill 3 big planters each with pines in a "thrill, fill, spill" arrangement. I want a color that looks good in summer and winter. I would paint them carnation pink but that wont fly around here. Yes I want the planter to be as noticeable as the plant.

Note: I am sorta red-green color blind....

A color that looks really summery in the summer but won't be tacky in the winter when everything is grey... And will mix with the pines, which mix both yellowy and blue greens.

I think - celadon green??

Logged

ďFrom each, according to his ability; to each, according to his needĒ 1875 K Marx

Hi Mecch , I guess plants in concrete planters fare better in your climate than they do here , concrete planters are a very good way to kill a plant here where I live because the concrete evaporates the moisture rapidly .

I had some really pretty concrete planters and had to admit after 3 seasons they were a waste even if I watered every day . Best of luck with your project and pics or it didn't happen .

These concrete style planters that are the standard ones in Switzerland. They look like this

I will fill 3 big planters each with pines in a "thrill, fill, spill" arrangement. I want a color that looks good in summer and winter. I would paint them carnation pink but that wont fly around here. Yes I want the planter to be as noticeable as the plant.

Note: I am sorta red-green color blind....

A color that looks really summery in the summer but won't be tacky in the winter when everything is grey... And will mix with the pines, which mix both yellowy and blue greens.

I think - celadon green??

mecch,are the planters pictured the ones you are talking about or just similar?context (location and surrounding elements) would have to be taken into consideration.the picture provided looks quite stately as is.i'm not sure why in any case that you would want the planter to stand out as much as the plantings, but i've seen examples that work well.

another thing to consider is paint on concrete.especially a planter.I would think the constant moisture in a concrete planter (especially if no liner was being used) could be problematic with the paints ability to adhere.you might want to get some expert advice from someone who knows painting concrete or you may be dealing with a peeling mess.

anyway...the creeping phlox have started to bloom! this is one of my favorite spring time bloomers.the pics are from last year in late April of the lavender carpet beauties cascading over the stone walls around our garage.

yes.I built the stone walls, cobblestone front driveway, the pond with stream, bluestone patio and walkways, and planted almost everything on the property.I'm glad I did it when I was more physically able.The last 3 years I had to hire someone to mow the lawn (and it's pretty small). Even a self-propelled mower is too difficult to handle.I still get out in short spurts to weed and prune but have to drag hubby out by his ears (he is short on hair .) to help with the heavy work.

mecch,are the planters pictured the ones you are talking about or just similar?context (location and surrounding elements) would have to be taken into consideration.the picture provided looks quite stately as is.i'm not sure why in any case that you would want the planter to stand out as much as the plantings, but i've seen examples that work well.

another thing to consider is paint on concrete.especially a planter.I would think the constant moisture in a concrete planter (especially if no liner was being used) could be problematic with the paints ability to adhere.you might want to get some expert advice from someone who knows painting concrete or you may be dealing with a peeling mess.

anyway...the creeping phlox have started to bloom! this is one of my favorite spring time bloomers.the pics are from last year in late April of the lavender carpet beauties cascading over the stone walls around our garage.

They are exactly the same planters. Its a Swiss company called Eternit. I have dealt with the paint type already. Or rather a swiss paint seller did. Everything in Switzerland is possible to the upmost compulsive detail - thats what they do well. They sold me gas permeable paint that works on Eternit and I've already had success over a few years, it works well. So far I have painted just neutral grey or beige.

So - what colour?

I want the pots to be noticeable cause they are "mid-century" Willy Guhl and they please my own eye all year looking at them. I have a decent collection. And also the balcony is small, so the pots will take up as much space as the pines for at least 5 years or maybe more. So the eye will enjoy the pots, if they are pretty....

And I "dramatically" light the whole affair sometimes at night, so that you can see the texture of the Eternit. And designy friends notice my Eternit collection and it pleases them when they do. I don't sell it, its just for my pleasure, so I don't care if I paint it. People buying it 60 years ago would paint it too sometimes... http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willy_Guhl

So what colour??

« Last Edit: April 18, 2013, 06:47:06 PM by mecch »

Logged

ďFrom each, according to his ability; to each, according to his needĒ 1875 K Marx

Every couple of years I will put in a lot of them. I like them in planters and to leave them thirsty many times in July and August... Just don't kill em. By September, you can have these strange bonzai looking impatiens...

Logged

ďFrom each, according to his ability; to each, according to his needĒ 1875 K Marx

anyway...the creeping phlox have started to bloom! this is one of my favorite spring time bloomers.the pics are from last year in late April of the lavender carpet beauties cascading over the stone walls around our garage.

So pretty.What is the red tree please?

Logged

ďFrom each, according to his ability; to each, according to his needĒ 1875 K Marx

Mitch you have an amazingly beautiful place....do you need a houseboy? I'm availble.

Forget the houseboy Mitch (rumor has it that she is FAR from age where she should use the term "boy") -- come down to VA. You can work with Sid in our gardens -- then he will go up to CT and work with you in yours. This way your hubby and I don't have to do anything but enjoy the gardens!!!!

Mitch, you have a beautiful place. We just planted some phlox around the pond. We barely did anything to our home for 7 years. After I was diagnosed, we've torn out almost every wall and done so much outside. It is therapeutic. I will have to post pics. Oh, we just bought the Prairie Fire Crabapple today, that I posted the pic of earlier in the thread. Going to plant it tomorrow.

They are exactly the same planters. Its a Swiss company called Eternit. I have dealt with the paint type already. Or rather a swiss paint seller did. Everything in Switzerland is possible to the upmost compulsive detail - thats what they do well. They sold me gas permeable paint that works on Eternit and I've already had success over a few years, it works well. So far I have painted just neutral grey or beige.

So - what colour?

I want the pots to be noticeable cause they are "mid-century" Willy Guhl and they please my own eye all year looking at them. I have a decent collection. And also the balcony is small, so the pots will take up as much space as the pines for at least 5 years or maybe more. So the eye will enjoy the pots, if they are pretty....

And I "dramatically" light the whole affair sometimes at night, so that you can see the texture of the Eternit. And designy friends notice my Eternit collection and it pleases them when they do. I don't sell it, its just for my pleasure, so I don't care if I paint it. People buying it 60 years ago would paint it too sometimes... http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willy_Guhl

So what colour??

My, my, what fancy pants planters you have. Seems like you got the paint issue resolved.Color, hmmm...Celadon green is nice or maybe a warm taupey beige (unless that's too much like you already did).

What a beautiful balustrade!! Love the heft!Sounds like a great spot too.

Ted,Thanks. Can't wait to see some more pics of your work! It is therapy isn't it?

Wumpy,Thanks.I always thought the upstairs of the garage would make for a cute houseboy apartment.Send me your resume and I will give it my due attention.You DO shovel snow right?

Mike,My husband already does nothing outside other than enjoying the garden. Maybe Sid and I can relax and watch you and Kenny flounder around in the garden.On second thought, I'm not so sure Kenny would know the difference from a weed and a boxwood.

P.,You may consider Wumpy an old troll but all that I am really looking for here is brawn and the ability to follow direction.Would I be disappointed?

I forgot that you asked about the red tree in the photo.It's a Japanese maple.I have 6 different varieties of them and saved all of the tags, but I didn't label which one was planted where.That one is great!I could narrow the odds to one of two.Eenie Meanie...Silly me. Space permitting, you could get a dwarf weeping variety and try planting one in a 10 gallon pot for your balcony.

Today I went out shopping for short pants.Knee length at my age and my toothpick legs. Went wild and bought 7 pair!!camo, powder blue, a couple of plaids, pale yellow, blue and white pin stripe, and something fun...white with little navy lobsters embroidered all over.

Mitch, did you plant the phlox, or were they there already? I was curious how many original plants were planted? I know they grow quickly. We planted some around the pond, but they don't have much room to spread like that, before running into other plants. I may move the others to make room for the phlox to spread.

Also, what do y'all know about tulips. I know serious gardeners plant new ones every year, to ensure beautiful flowers. My mom had some for years, but each year the plants would produce less and less flowers.

Here are some of mine. Planting new ones around the post lamp wouldn't be much cost or work, but planting new ones around the trees would be expensive. By the way, these tulips around the post were suppose to be all red, according to the package. Obviously, something got mixed up at the tulip factory.

The pansies were a surprise. Planted them around the post last fall. They lasted until January, and I thought they wouldn't come back. Actually, you can get petunias to come back, by opening the seeds and spreading them. But, the pansies didn't require any help.

I wished I had planted more on the upper row, but I would have to add more dirt, because you're hitting roots there.

I think there was a few small patches of phlox when we moved here.Over several years they grew pretty fast and I divided them several times.They seem to have a strong spurt of growth in the spring with slow growth during the summer.During the first year after dividing they need plenty of water and generally don't show much growth.One of the nice things about phlox is that if it grows "out of bounds" you can easily control it.

Tulips? While I love the beauties, I believe they are fairly short lived.I don't even bother planting them due to the veracious voles that often will eat 90% of the bulbs before the first bloom appears. They say you could put down a layer of wire mesh around the bulbs when planting to keep the varmints from their lunch but the effort doesn't seem worth it due to the short life span of the plant.Wish I had better news.They are beautiful!Bummer on the color mix up (although they still look great).

I bought mislabeled peppers 2 years ago.I thought I was planting Cubenelle peppers but ended up with tons of banana peppers.

It would be a very rare event for Pansies to survive a winter here.We do have what we call "Johnny Jump Ups" that are in the Pansy family which seed themselves easily.The flowers are much smaller and are usually (if not always) purple and yellow.

A lot of tulip varieties come up year after year after year. They are not short-lived. Course, if ravenous varmints are eating them up...

I have never had any luck and rarely have seen the same tulips in the same garden several years in a row.Maybe it's the voles but soil type, moisture level, and climate play a key role in success.Also, tulips should be dug up each year and allowed to ripen in the sun after the foliage dies.Work, work, work.

"Although tulips are a perennial, many gardeners treat them as annuals, to be planted anew each year. The North American climate and soil can't replicate the ancient Anatolian and southern Russian conditions of their birth. Gardeners in our western mountain regions come closest to this climate."